Brass Button's Musical Emporium

by trombrony98

Snowed In (Pt. 1)

All across Ponyville, snowflakes were falling to the ground, coating everything with a fine white powder. Cold winds swept through the town, sending the trails of smoke coming from the chimneys into a mesmerizing dance. A few brave ponies braced themselves against the cold as they travelled from one place to another.

Among these ponies was Brass Button, carrying a trombone case on his back as he trotted across town. Hearth's Warming Eve was coming up soon, and radio stations were looking for new music to play over the holiday. Every year, he would join up with a few other musicians from around town and put together a record to be played over the radio. He was lucky enough that Vinyl Scratch was able to give his group a steep discount during their wintry session.

He arrived at his destination and walked through the door. A cold gust rushed into the building behind him. "Geez, Brass, could you bother to close the door? You're letting all the cold air in!"

Standing across the room from him was his old friend, Vinyl. She was messing around with her sound system, most likely trying to get the sound stage ready for recording. He politely closed the door behind him, and sat down to wait for the others to arrive.

After a few seconds, Vinyl went over to him. She was in high spirits, humming along to the holiday music playing over the radio.

"Hey, Brass! Glad you could make it! I've already got everything set up for you. Just come on in to the soundstage when you guys are ready." She walked back over to the sound table and got back to adjusting the settings.

Brass Button took the trombone case off his back, opening the latches on the side and carefully assembling the instrument. He had just finished assembling it when the door opened again, letting a chilly blast hit the room.

Rarity walked through the door, carrying a flute case behind her. His usual flutist had fallen sick with the flu, and Rarity offered to fill in for her for the recording. She had become quite competent over the past few months; at the last rehearsal, she was able to keep up with the rest of the band despite havings years less of experience.

She gave a quick shiver as she removed her coat and scarf and hung them on the coat rack next to the door. "Oh, hello dear. It's quite chilly weather we're having today, isn't it?"

Brass Button looked out the window to see that snow had intensified and now created a layer a few inches deep in most places. He hoped that the weather would hold out long enough for them to finish the recording session. "It certainly is," he replied, giving a warm chuckle.

Rarity sat down beside him and opened up her case. She made quick work of assembling it, taking extra care to make sure it was in tune. A short little melody came out as she warmed up her instrument, reminding Brass Button that he had forgotten to warm up his own instrument.

He picked up his instrument and blew into it, which produced a flat tone, which was to be expected in this kind of weather. He pushed his tuning slide in, then gave another blow. That time it came out with a much better tone.

He was about to warm up when the door opened again, letting a small crowd of ponies into the room. He immediately recognized them as the rest of his small band: Toe-Tapper on trumpet, Torch Song on clarinet, Lyra Heartstrings on harp, Big Macintosh on string bass, and Fiddlesticks on violin.

They sat down around the room and unpacked their instruments, stirring up a chatter in the room. Rarity introduced herself to Torch Song and started up a friendly conversation about the seasons latest fashion trends, while Toe-Tapper, Fiddlesticks and Big Mac got into a heated debate about a recent sales tax increase.

Lyra took a seat next to Brass Button. After taking her harp out of her case and quickly tuning it, she turned to him and gave him a warm hug. "Nice to see you again, Brass. How's life?"

"Pretty good, I guess," he replied cheerfully. "Business has been kind of slow recently with the inclimate weather and all, but I should be getting a nice boost as we get further along in the holiday season. How's Bon-Bon?"

"She's doing alright. People are already starting to flood the store looking for candy, but with the help from me and Twist, we're managing. She's managed to keep a level head throughout all of this, amazingly. With patience like that, I'm kind of surprised she hasn't found her very special somepony yet."

Brass laughed on the inside at the irony of that statement. He could tell her about Bon-Bon's crush now, but he didn't want to break his promise. "Oh well. I'm sure she'll find them someday."

He looked around the room to see that everyone was ready. "Come on, guys! Let's get started!," he exclaimed, walking back towards the soundstage where Vinyl was waiting for them.

They quickly filed themselves into the room, taking a seat in an arc with a microphone at each spot. Vinyl took her spot at behind the glass and pressed the button which operated the intercom. "Testing, testing, one, two, three! Is this thing on?"

They all nodded. "Good! Alright, let's get this show on the road. Torch, can you give us a concert B flat?"

Torch Song brought her clarinet to her lips and played the note, producing a clear tone. The rest followed suit, matching the tones of their instruments to hers, adjusting to make sure they were all in tune.

As soon as the sound died down, Vinyl put her headphones on and made a few final adjustments to the sound system before speaking over the intercom again. "You guys all set? Good. 'Jolly Good ol' Puddinghead,' take one."

She turned the recording system on and gave them their cue. Music filled up the soundstage as they began playing, swelling and quieting down as they went through the song. Sometimes, the brass carried the melody with a proud fanfare, while at other points a soothing clarinet or violin solo took center stage. Vinyl looked out on all this, adjusting the systems when necessary to achieve balance but still enjoying every note of it.

After they finished with the piece, Vinyl stopped the recording and went to work adjusting the system for the next song. Meanwhile, Brass spoke to the group. "Great job, everypony! That was a truly great performance. Rarity, you came through much better than last rehearsal. Now just nine more to go!"

Vinyl finished setting up the system and went back to the sound table to get started on the next track. She took her spot behind the window and pressed the intercom button. "Alright! We've got one song down, let's keep on going! Places, everypony!"

The group quieted down and took their seats. Once everypony was ready, she spoke over the intercom again. "Here we go. 'The Little Drummer Colt,' take one."

Vinyl knew she would be needed on this one, so she set the system on to automatic and hurried out to the snare drum which had been set up in the corner of the sound stage. She heard the beep which signified the system was recording and started to drum out the intro.

After a few measures, Brass Button came in with the song's bass line, quickly followed by the entrance of the woodwinds and violin. It started out relatively simple but as the song progressed, it became more and more complex and delicate, eventually reaching a climatic brass fanfare followed by a gradual diminuendo to the end.

Vinyl returned to the sound table and turned off the recording. She repeated what she did earlier, adjusting the settings while Brass Button gave the group encouraging words. The next few songs followed a formulaic pattern of recording sessions and breaks. Before any of them knew it, they had made it through 'One Night in a Cave', 'Following the Stars', 'Platinum's Lament', and 'Snow in Manehattan'.

Brass Button decided that the group should take a break before continuing. They carefully set down their instruments and headed out to the lobby.

Outside the building, snow had been piling up. A foot of the white powder covered nearly everything, including their only exit. Brass Button panicked as he realized that they might be stuck there overnight. Everypony else soon followed his lead.

'Get yourself together, Brass!,' he thought. He tried to collect himself, breathing in and out as he let his thoughts settle. "Everypony listen up. Yes, we are trapped, but we'll make it. Let's just get ourselves together and get back to work," he asserted, not certain whether or not anypony had heard him.

Slowly the panic died down. Brass Button spoke up again. "Alright. Now that you're all calmed down, let's just her through this recording session then figure things out from there. You guys ready?"

The rest of them nodded. They walked back into the soundstage, where Vinyl was waiting for them. Confused, she asked, "What took you guys so long? I heard a commotion out there."

Brass Button gave an exasperated sigh. "Long story."

"Whatever. Well, now that we're all here, let's get back to work. Places!"

The rest of the session went by uneventfully. As they finished their last song, 'The Heart Carol', Vinyl took off her headphones and headed into the soundstage. "That's a wrap guys! This is going to be a chart topper for sure! You guys heading out?"

The group shrank back into their seats. "Yeah, about that . . . ," Brass Button trailed off mid sentence as he tried to avoid the subject.

Vinyl gave a blunt reply. "We're snowed in, aren't we."

They all nodded. A heavy silence fell on the room as they waited for her response. "You know what this means, right? Sleepover!" Confused stares looked back at her. "What, can't a grown mare like sleepovers?"

Rarity responded. "What a lovely idea! Why, it would be a good way to get to know each other better!"

After a few moments of stirring, the group agreed that it actually was a pretty good idea.

"Good! I'll go grab some pillows and snacks, while you guys head out to the lobby. This is going to be great!"

Author's Note:

So yes, this will be a two partner chapter. Sorry if I left you guys hanging. Don't worry; the second part will be out soon. I also will be writing a chapter in the sequel to The Album, specifically the Toe-Tapper chapter. Keep on reading!

Comments

[trombrony98]

Attention Readers!

I am currently looking for someone to create a better cover art for my story. As you can see, my cover art isn't exactly high quality or eye-catching. If anyone would be interested in creating a new cover art for this or knows somebody who would, please PM me as soon as possible. Thanks!